LEDs show potential as cost-saving alternative to overhead high-pressure sodium lamps AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – To satisfy increasing consumer demand for locally grown, fresh tomatoes during off-seasons, greenhouse tomato growers often need to rely on supplemental lighting. Tomato growers are looking to light-emitting diodes (LEDs), favored for their energy-saving potential, as an alternative to high-pressure sodium lamps (HPS) in greenhouse operations. A recent study offers new information about the feasibility of using LEDs in greenhouse tomato operations. Michael Dzakovich, Celina Gómez, and Cary Mitchell from the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture at Purdue University…
Author: urbanagnews
The University of Arizona Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (CEAC) 2016 Short Course will focus on Controlled Environment Agriculture for food production within traditional rural and nontraditional urban farms, with special concerns for water, energy use and environmental stewardship. The 15th annual Greenhouse Crop Production & Engineering Design Short Course will be held from March 20 – 25, 2016 at the beautiful Westward Look Resort in Tucson, AZ. New to the 2016 course are specific half-day sessions on “Indoor Growing” and “Lighting for Growing Crops in CEA.” In addition to the new sessions, the short course will feature a comprehensive program…
If you missed the e-GRO webinar “Managing Nutrient Solutions for Hydroponic Leafy Greens and Herbs” on Jan. 22, 2016, which was sponsored by Hort Americas, you can still view the webinar on YouTube. Hydroponic greens and herbs are produced in systems with recirculating nutrient solutions. In order to maintain productive and quality crops, it is important to know how to properly maintain the nutrient solutions. Dr. Chris Currey at Iowa State University and Dr. Neil Mattson at Cornell University discuss strategies for managing pH and EC, formulating nutrient solutions and identifying common nutrient disorders. Part 1: Common production systems, pH and EC management Presented…
Hort Americas offers several Riococo coir substrate products. Two of those substrates recently received OMRI certification for use in organic crop production. Riococo Coir Starter Blocks allow growers to propagate easier and faster to produce healthy plants organically. These biodegradable blocks are made from a 100 percent coir fiber compressed disc packed in biodegradable cellulose paper. The blocks have excellent water holding capacity. Equal distribution of water throughout the blocks ensures optimum management of the air and water balance and the equal distribution of nutrient solutions. The blocks’ natural coir fibers retain water and keep roots well-aerated. The blocks’ open structure is maintained…
Click here to download the issue. Urban Ag News Issue 12 | January 2016 Urban Ag News’ Issue 12 cover story on Westland Orchids and Westland Produce focuses on the father-son team of Jerry and David Van Wingerden. Find out how their companies have evolved to stay relevant and profitable as the horticulture industry has changed. If you are interested in how the international controlled environment agriculture industries are developing, be sure to read columnist Eri Hayashi’s special report on Japan’s plant factories and the Q&A article with National Taiwan University professor Wei Fang on his country’s plant factories. If you’re a fanatic about providing…
The AVF is an internationally active non-profit organization focusing on advancing Vertical Farming technologies, designs and businesses. AVF consists of individuals, companies, research institutions and universities. And all of them are united by the goal to foster the sustainable growth and development of the Vertical Farming movement through collaboration, education, and transparency. The AVF was founded in 2013, under the advisement of Dr. Dickson Despommier (Author of The Vertical Farm). It was an alliance between Max Loessl and Philip Wagner in Munich, Germany and Henry Gordon-Smith in New York City, USA. Their shared mission from the start was built upon…
Truro, N.S. – TruLeaf is wrapping up 2015 with a firm eye on its future. It is pleased to announce the addition of Jeff McKinnon as a Vice President of Operations and Chief Financial Officer, and Martin Jamieson and Pete Luckett as new investors and strategic advisors. Jamieson will also be the newest addition to TruLeaf’s Board of Directors. Additionally, the company is now testing systems for nutrients, water, and lighting at its facility in Truro, Nova Scotia: a first round of trial seeding will follow. New to the TruLeaf team is Jeff McKinnon, who joins the company as Vice…
– Chris Michael, Bright Agrotech Since the spring of 2014, Eric Bergeron and Eric Amyot have been growing and selling farm-fresh produce right in the heart of downtown Cornwall, Ontario. They started growing food because they saw the opportunity to make an impact on their local community by providing healthy produce to restaurants and grocery stores in their area. Since then, Eric and Eric have decided to empower other farmers across Canada with the world’s best growing equipment. Today, we’re very excited to announce that ZipGrow towers will now be manufactured and distributed in Canada! Watch the video: Modular Farms…
Creative working space and artisan coffee shop, Home of Honest Coffee, in the city of Salford, has taken one more step towards sustainability following the installation by Refarming Ltd & Co-operative and Mutual Solutions of one of HydroGarden’s VydroFarm vertical hydroponic systems in its basement. The system will be used to grow salad greens and herbs for use in its on-site kitchen. The initiative is the result of a new collaboration with local venture, Refarming Ltd and Co-operative and Mutual Solutions, and aims to bring food production closer to its consumers by working with ex-offenders during their rehabilitation process. It…
Valoya (Helsinki, FInland) a leading provider of advanced plant lighting systems, worked with Microsoft Corp. to create next generation of state of the art lighting system, using Valoya’s advanced LED lights, Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Azure Internet-of-Things (IoT) technology. The solution Valoya created, helped by the collaboration with Microsoft, is a novel solution for simulation of natural outdoor light. The system, called Valoya LightDNA Dynamic Light, enables accurate replication of outdoor light conditions over time, while matching the spectrum and intensity of constantly changing natural light. Research in this field is of outmost importance, as it will contribute to feeding…
Unanimous Vote by City of Pasadena, Texas Creates Property, Tax Incentives for Agricultural Research and Education Campus HOUSTON, Dec. 02, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — On December 1, 2015, the City of Pasadena, Texas, unanimously voted in favor of a Chapter 380 Economic Development Agreement with Indoor Harvest for the purpose of establishing an open source, vertical farm and education campus on the City’s north side. Indoor Harvest Corp (OTCQB:INQD), through its brand name Indoor Harvest®, is a full service, state of the art design-build engineering firm for the indoor and vertical farming industry, providing production platforms and complete custom…
“MicroGREENS: novel fresh and functional food to explore all the value of biodiversity” written by Francesco Di Gioia e Pietro Santamaria. Francesco Di Gioia is with the Università degli Studi di Bari in Italy and is currently doing post doc research at the UF/IFAS Southwest Florida Research and Education Center in Immokalee. (MicroGREENS) is a project funded by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry for the provision of funds to finance projects in the field of agriculture, food, forestry, fishing and aquaculture related to the goals of Expo Milano 2015. The project was born from the cooperation between the…
The CEAC is offering the January 2016 Intensive Courses on Hydroponic Tomato and/or Hydroponic Lettuce Production in Tucson, AZ. You can attend the Tomato specific course from January 3 – 8, the Lettuce specific course from January 8 – 10, or both courses from January 3 – 10. Where else can you receive a semester of university coursework in one week? The hydroponic crop intensives feature over a semester’s worth of course content presented strategically throughout the week to allow business professionals and growers to minimize their time away from home. The courses will combine classroom time with time in…
Soliculture (Scotts Valley, California) has released a new type of commercial greenhouse panel that both improves light quality by amplifying colors that are beneficial to plants and generates electricity with no loss to production. Soliculture has completed 3 years of commercial plant growth trials including vegetables, ornamentals, cut flowers, and berries that have shown that these panels mounted directly above crop production have neutral to positive effects on plant growth. Positive effects have ranged from early maturation, disease resistance, and longer production time. Electricity generated by the panels can completely offset the electricity needs of the greenhouse and other electricity…